humbug

My neighbor's Christmas lights are still up. And they are on. It's 10:30 pm on January 8th, and their holiday decorations are still lighting up my normally-dark piece of the world. It's likely that you are faced with similar sparkling reminders of late 2009, and perhaps you are faced with similar angst. Don't get me wrong; I'm a huge fan of the holiday season, but seriously, it's over, right?

Interestingly, this phenomenon is not relegated to "joyeux noel" (or "bom natal" for my Indian brothers and sisters; at least, I think those are right). It crosses all of our minds when we hear about the TV show that we have long since stopped watching being canceled; the web platform that no one uses anymore finally being shut down; the band that we haven't thought about since our youth that is still touring; the news of the once-famous actor, still using his catch-phrase, who just passed away. We ask ourselves, isn't that, wasn't that, shouldn't that have been over?

This momentary pause begs the question, why do we (and I think we all do in our own way) continue to hang on to a past that has...well...passed?

There is a danger in not recognizing the fleetingness of moments and in holding on too long to an internal, personal definition of 'self'. It is said that you are not who you think you are, but instead, you are who others think you are. In plainspeak: you might think your band still rocks, but take a look at the audience; you might think you are spreading Christmas cheer all year 'round, but take a quick poll of your neighborhood; or more to the point, you might think you are leading, but you try listening to those who are (supposed to be) following.

If you, as a leader, are not adapting, evolving, shifting with the tides, then you are likely not leading at all. If your metaphoric Christmas lights are still up even though the moment has passed, then you need to check your credibility; your team might still be following, but the angst, snickers, or finger-pointing might be following, too. Just because your team is accompanying you does not mean that you are leading them.

Tomorrow morning, I will smile and wave at my neighbor, like I always do. But I will also roll my eyes as I walk back down the driveway, as I always do. Thankfully, he wouldn't care. He has no stake in my opinion of him; you, however, you just might.

shanti,
mjh